The fire in my heart
by XxWingedangelxX
Summary: Post PJO but Percy is in it,Lukes not evil, a new girl arrives on the scene with a mysterious background, and a lifetime grudge against the gods. But has she enough power to oppose them? Luke/OC Enjoy!
1. The new girl in town

_I don't care what you think _

_as long as it's about me_

_The best of us _

_can find happiness in misery._

_~I don't care~_

_~Fall Out Boy~_

_SMACK_! And her head hit the floor repeatedly as she spun around on the floor, before finally coming to a halt lying on her back. She groaned, and spat out blood and sat up and looked around, because here the darkness was complete, yet Kaia could still see acutely. Here. Here? She needed to get away, to relax and it sent her _here?_ Camp "half-blood", if she remembered correctly, which she always did. Photographic memory and all. She looks around the place, deserted for after curfew hours, and not as magical as it had once seemed to her when last she came here with her father. Her _father._ She spat on the ground as the thought passed through her brain and sliced through her heart, but she must keep going, because nothing else kept her from fading away into nothingness.

"No, I swear on Zeus, I'm not kidding-I heard something!-I did. Come _on! Over here!"_ Hushed whispers carried to Kaia through the blackness and she rubbed her head, stood up and brushed off her knees. Didn't want those kids to think she was up to anything suspicious.

"I swear to the gods, Annabeth, if you're wrong, I'm not gonna let you win for a week." Another female voice whispered, and she sounded pissed.

"It's after curfew and you _know _Mr D. will kill us if we're caught out again."

"Cla_risse! _Why can't you be all high and mighty when it'll do us some good? Now hurry _up,_ or the harpies will see us." A few minutes, Kaia reckoned, and they'd be here. Her hearing ranged much further than demi-gods, and further still then mortals, but it gave her more acute hearing instead of ranged, which had saved her in the past more times than she could count on both hands.

"And, anyway when in Hades do _you _let _me _win? Ha! Remember that time y-oh, my gods! _Look!"_ The voices cut away and Kaia could clearly make out two girls, both with blonde hair, one slightly bigger than the other but both clad in browns from head to foot, even though it was mid June. She sized them up, and decided against knocking them out, for now. If it came to a fight, she would win with no doubt. And besides, she didn't want to get on Chiron's bad side just yet. Chiron, her old friend. What would he say to her sudden appearance? It didn't matter-she was here, now-she would stay until Hades burned beneath her feet.

"Who are you? Speak, child! This is our camp, an-"

"Oh, calm it down, would you? I just ported here from Ixia-_Ixia! _Do you know how big a headache that gives you? And _child? _Ouch. I'm eighteen, if you wanted to know. And damn, porting adds years, take it from me." Kaia cut her off, and proceeded to rub her head where a long cut ran down the side of her temple. Damn. More cuts and bruises to add to the collection.

"Wh-who are you?" the slightly bigger one spoke, with an air of dignity, and her sword already drawn and aimed.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Kaia said, spitting out blood and wiping her mouth with an already torn hoody. Her mottled grey and black pants were in reasonably good condition, but she scrapped her jacket, leaving her in only her pants which wrapped tightly around her leg from below the knee downwards, and a black vest.

"Okay," she groaned, putting her hands in her pockets and slouching to show that she wasn't going to hurt them, "take me to your leader." The girls looked her up and down, clearly unsure whether she was being serious or not, and whether she was a threat.

"We'll take you to Mr D., then, but no funny business, I'm warning you! I'm the daughter Ares, and you don't want to be on the other end of my sword, mortal." Wrong again, Kaia thought at the girl-Clarisse, if her hearing served her correctly-but she let it drop and wandered in front of them and straight down to the camp. If the girls thought it strange that she already knew the way to Dionysus' cabin, then they said nothing of it, and kept their swords unsheathed and at her back. They three or so hundred meters away fro his cabin, when a light flickered on in a cabin a hundred meter back, and the girls-Annabeth and Clarisse-jumped a foot in the air. The porch was facing away from them, to the way they had just come, but the boy that cam out of the double doors hopped the railing and dropped to the grass, padding up along side them when he saw that Clarisse and Annabeth had already turned and continued eyeing me up and walking.

"Hey-_hey. _What are you doin up after hours, I don't remember last time to be such a success." Kaia kept on walking in front of them, but she could still hear the smirk in his voice.

"That was, as you well know, _not _my fault Luke!" Annabeth whispered, but something else had caught Clarisse's attention.

"Do you want to get us all caught? Why don't you just shout out your cabin-and why did you have to turn the light on? Why aren't the rest of the Hermes kids up and causing trouble?"

"Oh, trust me, they have. They're on scout duty for it right now, as it happens. Me, being the responsible one, didn't do anything and stayed out of it." Luke chuckled and Kaia could feel his eyes burning into her back with intrigue.

"You mean you just didn't get caught doing anything." Clarisse grumbled, and Luke laughed, obviously not interested in the issue in discussion.

"Yes, well, you know me, can't keep out of a good tousle. But enough about me-who the hell is that? And don't you think you should be being a little less hostile? Oh, wait, I forgot it was you, Clarisse, my bad." Clarisse ignored his last comment, but Annabeth was the one to speak about Kaia.

"Well, I think it sure is lucky that we were out in the first place, because _she _just appeared out of thin air and caused a hell of a noise. If it weren't for us, well, she could be doing anything. She's eighteen, _apparently, _and claims to be able to _teleport_." She said dubiously, and I could hear that Luke hadn't yet drawn his sword, nor did he have one on him, which was a start.

"That's not accurately what I said," Kaia put in lazily, "I said I had ported here, not that I _could _teleport."

"So what's the difference, wise-ass?" Annabeth asked.

"Oh, nothing really. You're right, I can teleport. I was just _saying_." Kaia replied, and Annabeth hissed in frustration.

"I'm the daughter of Athena, goddess of wisdom, do you know what that means?" Annabeth asked.

"I'm sure I don't."

"It means don't backchat me! You'd be _wise _to get on my good side, girl, trust me, I would know." She whispered, obviously not wanting anyone else to wander out of their cabins and claim her find.

"Was that a _joke? _Wow, nice one." Kaia could tell she'd be getting along with this bunch. If she didn't rip their heads off in the process.


	2. Clarisse

_Her feelings; she hides._

_Her dreams; she can't find._

_~Nobody's Home~_

_~Avril Lavigne~ _

Dionysus, it turned out, neither stayed up late, nor woke up early. Ever. So it was with a heavy heart (and heavier instinct to run out screaming) Clarisse prodded the snoring camp director with the hilt of her sword.

"Ughh geroff, I wa-" at this point, Dionysus rolled over on his pot belly and saw Clarisse-just Clarisse, because the others had opted to stay outside-hovering over him with a sword in her hand (the fact that the hilt was pointing at him didn't register).

"WHAT IN HADES DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING? _GET OUT!_" Mr D. Roared at her-which was surprising in itself to know that he could do anything at the ungodly hour of 1 in the morning-yet Clarisse stood her ground and reminded herself of all the riches that would be hers shortly.

"S-Sir, We-that is t-to say, Annabeth and I, were just-just minding our own business, when w-"

"Get. On. With. It." Dionysus ground out, but at that moment Annabeth burst into the room to check on Clarisse, and Mr D. Let out an angry, to say the least, growl. "Get _out of my room_ and I will see you outside at _eleven _o'clock tomorrow morning! _No sooner!_" This statement was met with rushed apologies and humble "Good night's" as the two girls rushed out of his rooms and straight into Luke who was waiting out side the door. Annabeth shoved him backwards and Clarisse blushed deeply, but behind them the girl was smirking at them in the most ungainly way, and Clarisse's face suddenly went from red from embarrassment to red from anger.

"Well," The girl exclaimed "And that sounded good." Her bare feet were resting on the table and her hands were behind her head, but it didn't fool Clarisse. She was nothing if not observant. This girl, this stranger, she had that manner of one who could flatten you before you raised a finger, but chose to mock you instead, and wait for you to make the first move. She had the slinky walk of a panther, relaxed on the outside, yet coiled like a million springs on the inside, ready to spring at the slightest threat to its survival. Clarisse didn't know how right she was.

"Get up, stranger, and get your feet off of that table. Tonight, we shall chain you to a bed." She intended making the chains as tight as possible. No sleep for this bitch tonight.

"Ooh, sounds kinky." She shot back, and Luke laughed aloud as the girl watched her with eyes of frozen fire, for her eyes, Clarisse only just realized, were the colour of molten gold, and they seemed to darken and lighted in accordance with her mood. Her hair was a dark brown, and her skin a tan brown.

"To _keep you out of trouble_." She tried to explain, but it was already too late, because she could feel her face burning up again, and Luke was still laughing quietly. Damn him, if he couldn't be a man about this. Damn them all. She shoved past Luke on the way out of the cabin.

"You can take responsibility of her, then, since you love her so much." Her voice was bitter, and she knew it, but she didn't care. She didn't see the laugh drop off of Lukes face, or the concerned look that the girl gave her, but she knew that Mr D. Wasn't getting up anytime soon, and if she was caught out, she would say she was just returning from his cabin. She needed to let herself _feel_. And there was a secret place she knew, just beyond the forests edge, out by the lake. Way out of bounds. It didn't matter now, though. She needed to be calm.


	3. Annabeth

_When you're walking backwards_

_Don't be afraid to close your eyes_

_'Cause the Truth is, darling_

_That everything will be alright  
_

_~Color~_

_~The Maine~  
_

"Uhh..Hey, look, sorry about that. It's just, security's a bit tight here, and you managed to get in, and Clarisse kind of likes to be in control of stuff."Annabeth said to the girl, feeling no reason to comfort Luke, but strangely enough that this girl could be dangerous if gotten on the wrong side of. She stood, seemingly thinking, because her face was in a frown and she was staring in the direction that Clarisse had stormed off.

"Sorry about the sword thing, by the way. I, err, well...Luke. She said you were in charge of her, so. Looks like you'll have another in your cabin tonight, eh?" It was the start of holidays, and Annabeth knew that his cabin was full up, but, what the Hell, she thought, he'd been a jerk to Clarisse and, even if they weren't best friends, she didn't hate her as much as she pretended to. And she knew how it felt, to have someone you liked to make fun of you.

"Well, the hospitality around here _is _lacking somewhat. Come on, kid, we c-_huh?_" Luke had looked at the girl- except the girl had disappeared. _Into thin air._

"Well, and I didn't expect that one."

"Luke! How could you just let her go?" It so happened that Luke had assumed the girl was Annabeth's responsibility, because she had found her, and Annabeth had assumed that it were Luke's, because he was standing right next to her, and Clarisse had told him so anyway.

"You were the on looking right at her, Annabeth. Not my fault." He said, popping the't's and grinning. Annabeth growled.

"Stop being such a jerk and help me look for her then! Come on. She could only've gone down this way." Annabeth pointed to behind Luke, down the muddy track.

"Towards the Lake? I highly doubt it. Not much down there. No, she could be anywhere. You know what she said about teleporting. Must be more subtle than we imagined."

"Oh, and you really believed that crap?" Luke only rolled his eyes and gestured to the place where the girl had been standing not five minutes ago. Annabeth sighed. She was getting sick of being the responsible one, and it was late, and she was tired.

"_Fine, _Luke. Sort it out yourself. I'm going to bed." And with that, she stormed off, ignoring the increasingly loud whispers of Luke from behind her. What a fine asshole he was. Let him deal with it himself, his head was big enough. And anyway, instincts told her that the girl was harmless enough, with out a cause. She'd disappear, n that would be that, and there was nothing Annabeth could do about it. She trudged back to her cabin, taking care not to wake up her siblings. They slept soundly when she came in, but as she hunkered down for the night, she thought she could hear something. A scream? No. Something-being smashed. That was more like it. But as the seconds ticked by, and Annabeth drifted further and further into a deeper and deeper sleep, she wasn't so sure.

_**Hey I know its short sorry bout that couldn't think of anything else on Annabeth part. Next up; Luke! Read and Review x**_


	4. Luke

Agh-Girls! Luke couldn't stand most of them for more then a couple of minutes at most. Annabeth was one he could be around for a while, although she stormed out a lot, and Clarisse wasn't too bad after she got over her crush for him. She just snapped at him a lot, but he didn't know how she could think that she was being subtle about her feelings.

It didn't matter, though, he felt nothing for her, except maybe a brotherly love, but at the same time, he didn't want to hurt her feelings. He knew he could be a jerk sometimes, but it wasn't as if he went out of his way to be a prick.

When he was pissed at things, like Percy being favourite _all the time _even though Luke was a better fighter(not that this happened too often though, since Luke and Percy were like brothers), or some kid making a wise-ass comment about his father, then his jokes would have the tinge of malice in them. Scratch that. He was the company from hell when he was pissed, he knew that. It was one of his many flaws, but he wasn't the type of guy to delve onto that. Ever. It sucked, he knew, to be on the receiving end of his shots, but, like he always told himself, that's life.

"What do I have to do, lure her out?" He muttered under his breath, but he knew he'd track her down somehow. He was the type of person who couldn't let things lie. Ever. And so he ran his hand through his messed up blonde hair and, shooting a last withering look at Annabeth's cabin/small house, he spun around and started jogging back down the way his back had been facing. Before he turned around though, he caught a glimpse of the Hermes cabin's lights glowing softly, and he smiled. They'd be up for a while now, probably buzzed from the scouting punishment-which was actually an excuse to screw around, because as _if _there was any way anyone was getting into camp half blood- and a new arrival would certainly be...interesting if he got back with her in the next two hours. Some of the guys loved to have something new to look at, although most weren't pigs and actually enjoyed the new company, and the girls, they would either love her or hate her; only time would tell.

An hour later, he had gotten nowhere. Mud was up his jean legs and the knees were ripped more than they should've been. His shirt had been soiled. This was _not _a good look. It screamed; _I don't take of my self. _Not his usual _I don't care. _Is there a difference? I hear you ask. Yes. Yes there is. Chicks dig the _I don't care. _If Luke wasn't Luke, he thought, he'd be jealous of him as well. The path that ran around the entire camp giving off to a vertical drop, he had sprinted no way she was beyond that, if she was still in camp. The lake he had scoured, the tree houses he had searched, and still; no sign of her. He was beginning to get annoyed. Who was she, to keep him up so late, and who was Clarisse, to charge him with her? No one. They were nobody. And he would find them; soon.

30 minutes later and...nothing. Damn it, Luke, pull yourself together! Not a sign, not a peek. How long had they been out there? They must've got back by now, or they'd' have frozen. He dropped from the tree where he'd been perched and doubled back on himself, jogging back to camp. Mud and sweat mingled on his forehead, his arms were scraped from about twenty minutes previous, when he'd got bored and started playing ciao ciao-a game which involved dangerously leaping from branch tip to branch tip, trying to not get caught, basically hit and run in the tree. In any case, he took a jump that he shouldn't have, not less than six meters by any stretch of the imagination- and plunged at least that onto the pine covered floor. Ouch. The only consolation being that the woods he was scouring were on a steep slant, although, admittedly, slamming into the trees pre falling into the lake wasn't on the top of his 'to do' list for the night. But nothing says wuss like a moaning demi-god. And Luke certainly wasn't that. He would find those girls if i-

"Hahaa, yeah, like, _all the time." _Clarisse-that was Clarisse's laugh! Was she-was she talking to herself? Okay, this went way beyond weird.

"Tell me about it. Hey-you're hiding's dismal, you know that?" This was aimed at Luke-but with a hint of malice in them. What had they been talking about? It was that girl and Clarisse-_talking. _Someone was actually talking to Clarisse.

"Ugh. I'm out of here." Clarisse snorted a slur to her voice and a jitter to her walk, with two red cuts down her face. She was drunk.

"Whatever, I'll see you later." The girl said to her, content to let Clarisse wander zig-zaggedly across the lawn back to her cabin.

"You're pissed." Luke accused, but the girl just shrugged.

"I took most of it for her. You should be grateful."

"Oh, yeah. You're lessdrunk then her, and it doesn't matter. Alcohol is illegal here. You're screwed when I tell Mr D." Luke told her, and she smirked.

"Yeah, perhaps. But you won't tell him. You were drinking when you came out of that cabin, I can smell it." True, but it wasn't much, and he knew he didn't stink of it. "You drink to relieve your pain, but you only get pissed because you know you don't care, not because you want to drain out the world." A lucky, lucky guess. She didn't know jack. She was bluffing. How the hell did she know that, though? Mind reader? No. Not. A. Chance. He would kill her before someone read his mind. He would.

"I'm nota mind reader," She continued. "in case you're wandering." But it was too late, because Luke had launched himself at her, and she had side stepped, and he had rolled onto his feet and whipped around, and now; he was pissed.

"Get out of my head."

"I'm not in there big boy. Calm it down; breathe." Luke was up now and side stepped: she countered. He lunged forward: she lunged back, and he saw his opportunity. They were in a clearing about five by five meters, right on the edge of the woods, only a couple of trees in between them and lawn. If he could freak her into sprinting away across the lawn, then he could out run her, pin her down, make sure she definitely couldn't read minds.

"I wouldn't think about fighting me. Not a good idea. Seriously." She had her hands up in the universal 'whoa, back up' gesture.

"Look, I can't read minds, okay? I know how you feel. You don't want anyone in there, taking your thoughts." Mistake number one. _I know how you feel. _Bullshit. How many of those stupid therapists had said that, the ones that Chiron had sent him to? Bull. Shit. No one knew, and no one would ever know.

He tensed his muscles a little, relaxed his pose, but not his mind. Left a bit, left a bit

she countered. For ward, forward, she back tracked, and he saw his window of opportunity. He lunged at her again but kept his footing when she spun and ran, sprinting after her. But damn, she was fast. She zipped through the last remaining trees and ran for at least fifty meters of the lawn before Luke's hand grazed her shoulder. She sped up. Around the cabins, around the lake, onto the straight path to the training meadow; and Luke poured on the speed. He caught up with her in seconds, the gravel underneath his bare feet sprayed everywhere, his track running spinning in his head. Faster, faster, and he tackled her to the ground. He felt bad when the side of her face smashed into the gravel, but she had wriggled over in two seconds and was now throwing punches at him, not one scratch on her face. She was fast, but he was strong, and as he straddled her he pinned her arms by her side and kneeled on them. He brought his face down to her ear and planted his hands either side of her head. He legs kicked out, but his body weighed hers to the ground and they were useless. He had the feeling that she was laying off a bit, but for the moment, that was okay.

"Can you read my mind?" he hissed in her ear. Her hands wriggled underneath his knees and suddenly he had been flipped over and her hands had interlocked with his, pinning them above his head. His strength was useless when they were in that position unless he was on top of her, which was unlikely.

"_No._" She whispered in his ear, and let go of his hands. They instantly went to her stomach to shove her off; but hers went to his head and clasped his skull.

"_You will understand." _

**I coulda made it longer but need to start off Kaia's part, and we'd be goin over parts you already read **** read and review please!**


	5. Kaia

_A Friend is someone who knows the song in your heart_

_And can sing it back to you,_

_Even when you've forgotten the words._

_~Bernard Meltzer~_

Kaia rolled her eyes and slowly back stepped when Luke and Annabeth blinked, slowly blending into the shadows. She rolled in shadow through the lawn and down through the trees, easily catching up to Clarisse. She could see for miles in every direction when she was shadow travelling, and move inhumanly fast, but it was hard to stay discreet unless darkness cloaked the places where she travelled, which was fortunate, because here; it did.

She flitted from tree to tree, a cloaking mass of blackness that distorted all that lay within, and watched as Clarisse stumbled through the gnarly oaks and silver beech's, the gangly willows and emerald green pines. Kaia marvelled at sheer intensity of magic that was being used to keep all these trees able to grow in the same place at the same time, but she could leave that for another time.

There was something about this girl-this pathetic, mortal, teenage girl-that called to something-some_one_-inside her that empathised with her heartache and confusion, this lost little girl. Kaia was only one year her senior at eighteen, but it felt like a lifetime ago that she was in the same situation.

Heartache wasn't something she liked, but it was something that was drawn to her. They came in packs, seeking her help, but only the heartache showed Kaia the ones who needed true help with their lives. A while ago, what felt like more than a lifetime ago, she enjoyed doing this. Punishing the wicked, aiding the good. She used assassinate a lot of people; because she could. She used to kill the evil that roamed her streets, murdering, raping, dealing.

And dealing, that was her downfall. Not drugs, it wasn't as if she'd do drugs in a long, long time, but magic. Black magic was dealt in the back alleys of her streets, and it killed her people off one by one, until the bubbliness that should've laid in the little girls hearts and the adventure that should've seeked out the boys was replaced by a fear so vivid that it could be tasted. And then; the event so unspeakable that Kaia refused to relay it in her mind, let alone tell anyone what had happened. After that night, that night of horror and bloodlust, she shut herself off from the world, and from all who loved and needed her. None, she reasoned with herself, loved or needed her, and so leaving after that didn't bother her. It more a case of when then how, although her home was on lockdown after that. Trouble was, the danger, Kaia knew, wasn't out side their home. It didn't prowl the vast forests, nor sit in one of the many bars at night and wallow away their sorrow at the bottom of a bottle. No. It was much, much closer.

But what was it about this girl that drew her past crashing back down on her? She didn't want to know, and would cry for the first time in four and a half years when she found out.

"Why can't he..._just leave me alone?"_ Clarisse asked in an aggravated voice, and staggered up onto her feet, brushing herself off. She continued to mumble to herself as she turned around dizzily and staggered the way she had been going. Kaia followed silently. On and on she jogged, her breath half way between sobbing and sniffing, until finally she-they-entered a clearing, and Kaia looked up. Clarisse already knew what was there, and so didn't bother, but instead dragged her feet through the pine needles on the floor and to the rope ladder. It hung nearly as long as Kaia's mouth as she gazed up at tee house. It stood among not one but three trees; and she could see what it once was. It was less of a tree house and more of a studio flat from what it looked like-but it hadn't been renovated in a long time.

There was a clearing about fifteen meters in diameter directly in front of the tree house, where it looked like there used to be a sizeable bonfire surrounded in big stones, but to the side of the three sturdy oaks (spaced at least thirty meters apart) silver beeches and grand sycamores hid the back end of it from view.

But Kaia turned her attention back to Clarisse who had now made it to the top of the twenty five foot rope ladder and was unlocking a much locked door. Three deadlocks, two chains, tow switch locks and several others guarded this haven-and Kaia wouldn't enter it with out permission that was for sure. She slipped through the grass-still shadow travelling-and twined up the rope of the ladder, being disorientated for a moment before finding her feet, and jamming her foot in the nearly-slammed doorway that Clarisse had unbolted and stormed through. She turned around.

Righto Read and review?

Next bit coming up shortly, just a bit of stuff to do is why they're delayed, but I'm trying to keep 'em coming every day. Hope fully. :D x


	6. The tree House

_Let's get wasted, it's all we ever do._

_We're so supid; that's okay,_

_The drunks are your friends._

~Ever So Shy~

~General Fiasco~

She was standing there, lolling in the doorway with this look-this horrible, _concerned_ look-upon her face. Her arms were crossed across her chest and her hands were tucked into her armpits, but she looked ready to argue about something or other. _What the fuck was she doing here? _Clarisse was thinking, but she daren't scream it at her in case she became even more hysterical. Tears streamed in rivulets down her face which she couldn't control, but she wiped them away anyway, making sure that bitch wasn't her imagination.

"What-what do you _want?" _she hissed in the strongest voice she could muster, but it still broke on the last word, and she cursed herself for it.

"Get out of here. Go. Away." She ground out, and turned away from her.

"Hey, look, I know what you're go-"

"Don't even _say _that! You have _no. Idea!_ I-"

"Okay! Okay. You're right. I don't know what you're talking about. But-but you need to calm. Down. You need to let me help you. Talk to me. Just talk to me, that's all." Kaia didn't know what she was talking about, but she did need Clarisse to calm down if she was ever going to get into the tree house and talk to her properly.

"You have _no. Idea." _Clarisse repeated, kneeling on the smooth mahogany floors next to an old armchair in the corner. Levels of the tree houses' floor rose and fell at different points, assumably to account for the branches sticking in and out. And it would've been beautiful, if it had been cleaned up in the last, oh, say, thirty years? The roof had collapsed in several places and several of the mirrors on the walls had been thrown and smashed onto the floor. The room that Clarisse was in now was a large one, led to by two small steps from the door and led off by a pyramid of two more steps leading into other rooms. Walls had even been built between the rooms to separate them, but Clarisse only now acknowledged that the holes in them needed repair. Rugs of oranges and browns and reds were strewn across the floor, but she took no notice.

Clarisse put her back against the back of the heavy armchair and braced her feet against the wall and shoved with all her might. It budged back a meter, and the rug that it was place on also shifted a bit, enough to reveal a notch in the wood, such a notch that would come about if a particularly big knot were to be removed from the mahogany.

As it was, Clarisse inserted her fingers into the notch and tugged, while still sniffling, with all her might, and succeeding in pulling up a hefty piece of flooring, about two by two foot. That obviously opened into the trunk of the tree. It was cleverly done, well positioned, and didn't look like any heavy drinking had been done; because the bottles of spirits and alcohol that were stored in the cubby hole were nearly full.

"Clarisse." The girl said in an even tone, still leaning against the door frame with her shoulder.

"I'm not sure-"

"_Shut up, _you stupid girl._" _Clarisse snapped back, and proceeded to reach into the narrow shute of booze.

"It's Kaia, by the way."

"Right, thanks for that." She pulled out a bottle of vodka, and laid it down beside the trap door. She closed it, and pulled the rug and chair back over, and then walked to the mini fridge that was just visible from the entrance, pulled out two litre bottles of coke.

"Can I come in?" Kaia asked from the doorway, but Clarisse just snorted.

"Into this dump? Do you think I care?" her tears hadn't stopped, but her choking and sobbing had, so now she could just feel the Kaia's gaze in her head.

She mixed the vodka and coke-3 parts vodka, 1 park coke. This, added to the fact that she never usually drank-well, she'd never drank properly ever, period-and also that she hadn't eaten in a while, well, she'd just say that she'd be forgetting things pretty bloody quickly.

"Still don't think that's the best thing to do, you know." Kaia said quietly, and Clarisse nearly jumped a foot in the air, because that girl had moved from the doorway to the sofa in less than a second- when she was five meters away.

"How-how did you _do _that?" Clarisse asked, only half concentrating on Kaia. The rest was to control her shaking hands as she poured her second glass of vodka and coke.

"Do what-this?" She whispered, and dissolved into a mass of churning blackness. Clarisse stared, mystified and only a bit afraid, as that same blackness stretched and contracted around the various chairs and sofa's and finally bulked and solidified in the corner adjacent to Clarisse. She sucked in a breath.

"Oh, my god," She laid down her glass and the vodka bottle beside the armchair and pushed herself up. "What _are _you?"

"Don't worry, I ask myself the same question." She replied calmly, but it wasn't enough. One and a half glasses of vodka had already dulled her senses and frazzled her nerves, leaving her disorientated and confused. She swayed on the spot and, when trying to move, tripped over a discarded foot stool straight onto her face, hissing as she drew her head up to glare at me. Two red lines tracked their way along her jaw.

"Can't you just leave me alone? What do you _want? _You follow me here, which I can't imagine was an easy journey, and you-you're not even _doing _anything! Say something!" she screamed the last part, but Kaia stood there, giving her that look again. That _stupid, understanding _look. She couldn't stand it, lashed out; she was quick, Kaia was quicker. Kaia blocked her left jab and then her right, dodged a swing at her head and flipped back to put a halt to further combat.

"Hey-_Hey._ I'm trying to help you here! I-no, I don't know how, yet, but-trust me-I will. I can help you."

"No one can help me." And to that, Kaia was silent. For all of twenty minutes, Clarisse sat there in the big, old armchair; drinking, and Kaia sat on a slightly small but comfy window seat with all of three large cushions. The seconds ticked by, and as they did so, pieces of Kaia's confusion slotted into place but it was like it was a connect-four behind a 99.9% opaque screen, and she could see jack all.

40 minutes later

And Clarisse had stopped drinking, because Kaia had snatched it away from her. She was already hammered, but the more she drank, the more it drowned out the pain, and she wasn't about to stop at a quarter of the bottle, although, seeing as it was a much larger than average bottle, and much higher than average percentage, it took a lot, _lot _less to get her hammered. And she was. But still, Kaia knew, if she drank the rest, she'd be may be putting her life at risk. The percentage was way too high-nearly straight vodka-and her body was too ill developed to cope; she'd be throwing up all day tomorrow as it was.

So, Kaia had snatched it away from her and returned to her window seat, slowly swigging at the rank stuff. Better to show Clarisse that it was going to good use rather than chucking it out of the window, because she might get angry.

"So, who built this place?" Kaia asked

"Mee, I-I did. With, you know Thalia and Annabeth."

"And Luke?"

"_Luke._ What d'se know, that lying _foul _little _brat._" Clarisse spat.

"What's he done, then? Seems he'd have to do something real bad, if you ask me, for you to hate him so much."

"H-he, he...he just _exists, _that's all. And then-he prances around, like he's gods fucking gift to everyone, and then acts like he's your best friend, and then _drops you, _as if, you know, it's your fault th-that he's gone, and-and you gotta just be bloody _grateful _that he was in your life already! It's like, he's just a fucking pretty boy, and-and _you can't help but love him. _Don't get me wrong, I don't and I know I don't, but-but it's like; you know it's wrong, but you can't help look at him ,and laugh at whatever he says. I'm over him, I think. I mean, I don't want to be with him like I did before, because I know he's a-a player. But, it just hurts-"

"-to know that no one else sees it." Kaia finished, and Clarisse nodded. She didn't expect to tell Kaia that much, but what the hell?

It wasn't as if it mattered anymore, because she was over him. And after she felt the alcohol churning in her stomach, but before she raced to the window at the back to be sick, she realised that this was finally true.


	7. A talk in the Woods

_I got troubled thoughts,_

_And a self-esteem to match._

_~What a Catch, Donnie~_

_~Fall Out Boy~_

Hey guys-hope you're enjoying this. It's kind of just something I though about and was like, hey, maybe other people might enjoy this, so whatever. Please read and review-anything is welcome, I just want to know! Good? Awful? Too draggy? PLEASE; I need to know. Thanks so much for even looking at this-Enjoy!

Kaia sat there; still in her window seat, still listening to Clarisse. She needed this, Kaia knew. Needed to tell someone not for closure-that would come soon, whether she liked it or not-but because as she spoke to Kaia, words and thoughts assembled that she had never thought of before, never even realized were real. And so she came to a realisation within herself, which needed not to be spoken aloud nor dwelled on, because it triggered a release inside her. And so she sat there and slowly, slowly sobered up as the seconds turned to minutes, and the minutes turned to hours, and the hours turned to time that was spent chatting and laughing.

What started out with two normal looking girls throwing insults at each other ended in two beautiful women bonding over an empty bottle of vodka, although both were nearly sober, and both coming to a divine realisation; that there was more to themselves than they thought possible. And so both secretly laughed with a little more happiness than they usually would have, and both spoke of things in their past that had never passed their lips before, and too soon Clarisse's eyes drooped, and Kaia decided that it was time to go.

"No, really, I'm fine." Clarisse promised.  
"Ugh, I'm not-I'm exhausted." Kaia lied, fake yawning, and stood up from her new favourite place to sit.

And so they both stood, Kaia perfectly balanced, Clarisse swaying where she stood, and made their way down the ladder. Kaia waited at the bottom, making sure the blonde warrior didn't fall, but she managed down, and threw up. Nice.

"I-I'm fine."

"I can see that."

"Let's go." Clarisse said, and led the way back, after what seemed like five hours but which Kaia knew was only two.

Trekking back, they carried on talking, neither missing the fact that even after all the talking they had done, they only had vague ideas of who each other was. Kaia knew that Clarisse was the daughter of the Greek god Ares, and that she had been recruited by Luke by fluke, while he was on a mission **(AN I don't know how she was recruited but just roll with it).** Apart from random events from her past, like winning just about everything that Luke wasn't in, and getting roughly beaten by Luke in capture the flag once when he was pissed, Kaia didn't know much else about her life.

On the flip side, Clarisse knew even less than that about Kaia. When she asked her about her past, she'd talked of how, when she used to be upset, her brother used to take her out, and they used to jump fully clothed into some lakes that were near them, or climb to the tip of the highest trees, and take twice as much time getting down. When she asked her where she used to live, Kaia just said; "afar, far away." And then changed the subject abruptly.

"Speaking of myths like that," Kaia spoke, changing the subject from wishing on stars to on other things, "You heard of eleven elevens here?" Clarisse gave a throaty laught, and put her head down.

"You ever wish on 'em?"

"Oh, yeah, I do. Every night. Sad, huh? How about you?"

"Well, not really. Sure, I used to. I just wish, like, everything could sort itself out alone, you know?"

"Hahaa, yeah, like, _all the time." _Larisse said, and the hairs on Kaias neck stood up at exactly that moment. A leaf rustled. Someone breathed.

Well, the next chapter will skip right onto Kaias POV of the chase, not Carry on from this, cus then I'd jus be repeating material. Read and Reveiw! :D x


	8. An Understanding

_Gotta secret-can you keep it?_

_Swear this one you'll save._

_Better lock it in your pocket,_

_Taking this one to the grave._

_~Secret~_

_~The Pierces~_

So there she was, straddling him and pinning his arms above his head, and she was fine with that, because she was in control; and she knew it. But she let go. Put her hands to his head. Whispered to him a secret that shouldn't be passing her lips, and powers that she swore would never again pass through her head.

"_You will understand_." She whispered in Luke's ear because, like Clarisse, this boy drew her to him, and she felt like she was getting tugged in too many different directions, but right now, she was here, and he was here, and she needed to find out what was making her act so strangely. Mind sharing, she reasoned, would let him see that she was no mind reader, because he ad to let go of a memory or thought and she the same, if either were to see a thing. And he would; he would understand. She would make sure of it, because she despised mind readers tenfold more than he did, and he needed to know that.

_Why, _why_ does he need to know? What's _wrong_ with you Kaia? What happened to trust _no one?She was wondering to herself as she laid her forhead against his, and, not having participated in mind sharing before, Luke instantly let go of a memory, the easiest thing to let slip.

_Fire blazed all around him, singing the tips of his hair and burning off the hair on his arms, as sweat ran down his face, not reaching his chin before it evaporated. He grit his twelve year old teeth and glanced around him; the ceiling had already collapsed in several places, and so had the stairs leading down. The window was the only other option. Two stories up, he'd survive the straight drop, but it would hurt a bitch. _

_He ran; and smashed through the window. Down, down, he didn't have time to think before he hit the ground rolling and lay on his back, gazing up at the twinkling stars, and..._

The memory faded away before Luke could comprehend what was happening, but Kaia let a memory slip out of her grasp and through their link, sure that Luke could feel it hovering in their now linked hands and met foreheads, waiting for a sister to exchange.

"Don't...I don't want-"

"I. Am. Not. A mind reader."

_Luke gazed around him, but all he could see was grand pillars of marble either side of him, and straight in front-about two hundred meters into this colossal building-a pair of immense marble stair cases glided around a water fountain depicting all manner of animals spewing water from their mouths and beaks. Two adults; a man and a woman, were shouting at each other on the stairs, but it was like the speakers that he heard from had been blown, and now only a muffled shout cam through. The woman wore a skin tight dress of golden sparkles which came up past her neck and down past her wrists. The man wore a suit of expensive material, but his jacket was off, his shirt half untucked, his tie askew, and he was waging war against this women. Luke wouldn't've been able to tell he was exasperated and tired, and that the woman was playing a double game, but minus the huge, expensive house, this might as well of been one of his memories. He could tell the man was this girl's father, from the way he held himself, the lift of his chin, the depth of his eyes, but this woman? She bore no resemblance to the girl, with her bleach blonde hair that lay rim rod straight upon her shoulders of gold, and her cold, unyielding blue eyes. But she had a relationship with the girls father; stepmom. Luke's experience had told him to steer clear of them, when he had a choice. _

He zoned back into the present, and an inkling inside him told him that this felt right, not like mind reading, she couldn't _steal _his thoughts, no more than he could steal hers, but they could share, and, in sharing, understand.

_This...is what I need. You can't steal my thoughts, but I think you can hear me, if I let you. If not...then I look like an idiot right now. Great. Just great. But it doesn't solve my tr-shut up. Leave it. I don't want y-_and bam, she was gone, and his mind was alone. But she had never even been in his head, and he had known that. He had just been channelling his thoughts through their connected hands and forehead, like she had done with him. Sharing. Connected. He was almost embarrassed. Almost. But then he remembered his stepfather, hitting him around, and he wanted this girl to know that he _knew_

_-and just like that, he was sharing his thoughts with her again. And he could see what had slipped past his defences; it was seven years ago, and he was his twelve year old self again, his head smacking against the files cabinet in their home in California. House. In their house in California. It had ceased to be a home when the sonofabitch that was throwing him around had moved in, and it would never be home again. Kaia stood in the corner of the room, flinching when Luke's step father hit him. And Luke saw it all. He had chosen to show her something-although what he shared was out of his control-and he had chosen to stay and see what it was. He stood in the opposite corner to Kaia, watching her expression and not his childhood. And there he saw it; she understood. Understood the dilemma, the catch 22. It was make you're life better, or stick with you mom or dad. And it killed you to leave them, to tear yourself away from the one person that you could depend on, so you did it at a point in your life when you were so pissed off at both of them that it was all you could do not to break down and die. Luke's mom-_whip-_and they weren't there anymore, they were in a forest, and it was the girl sharing thoughts with Luke, nine years ago, sitting, staring into a huge bonfire with a man, as muscled as you like, sitting opposite._ Brother._ The girl mouthed from beside him but-_whip-_and they were sitting at a kitchen table for five, with the old Luke and his mom and stepdad. His dad had his palms splayed on the table and his mom looked as if she had nothing to do with it. _And-whip-_back in the same forest that Luke had seen the girl and her brother, but this time, he could only see what she could, as if he were living through her eyes in her memory. She was running-sprinting- through the forest, not looking around her or above her at the towering trees, but just ahead. She hopped over a fallen tree and ducked under another, dodged a bush and came to a part of the forest where an area was closed off by tall, thick hedge that looked like it had been grown, because it formed a circle, about fifty meters in diameter with about a dozen trees inside it's border. A very small semi circle hole could be seen in the hedges perimeter, and Luke crawled through it, raised his eyes a fraction and-_SNAP.

The loss of connection hit Luke as bad as a physical blow, and he put his hands to his head, wincing in pain as a killer headache started up.

Kaia lay a meter or so away, panting and sweating with this-this _crazed _look in her eyes that told him to back up, _fast._

"Hey, _hey. _It's alright. It's okay. Hey, whoa, just-"

"_What did you see?" _She hissed, in a feline crouch with one hand on her knee and one flat on the floor.

"Hey, come on, _you _were the one who started..._this._ I didn't ask for it. Hey." He crazed look had resided now, but she was still in her feline crouch, although her eyes had fallen to the floor and she looked more like she wanted to run and hide than talk. Which is what he needed.

"Hey," He said gently, "I don't want to hurt you. I-I didn't see anything, I-"

"_Liar." _She hissed.

"Okay. _Okay. _I saw-I saw, like, _through you. _Through your eyes, and you were running through a forest-hey, didn't you see this, anyway? I mean, I saw what you saw. Didn't you-"

"_No! _I didn't, okay? I just didn't."

"Alright already! I get it, but you know, you can tell me stuff without biting my head off!" Luke was shouting by the end of it, because desperation had shone through, and he knew that was something he couldn't risk. He though she knew, thought she understood, but maybe-maybe she didn't. And maybe she did. Time would tell, and if she understood, then time was something he was willing to give.


	9. They walked, anddidn't talk

_"What happens if a car comes?"_

_"We die."_

_~The Notebook~_

His shouts echoed through Kaia's body like a shock wave, and she shook herself of the death fear that gripped her. What had he seen? _Had _he seen anything? Because if he had...what? she'd, what, kill him? She'd sat on it for six years of her life now, and when had anyone been there for her? When had there been anyone to talk to about it? There wasn't one person's shoulder to cry on, not one person to trust, or that she trusted. They came to her mom, like bees to a fucking hive, with flowers and drinks and baskets of food, with exotic pets and beautiful dresses, and jewellery, with diamonds and rubies and emeralds the size of her fist. They came to her dad, the women did, with rings and condolences and suggestions, but he turned them all down; unlike her stepmom. She wondered how her father could look past all this, and still pretend that his wife wasn't screwing other men, dealing black magic, _murdering people. _She wondered, and never came to a conclusion.

"Hey, I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry. I-I just thought that, that you might understand, you know? I don't know who you are, and no, I don't know what you want bur-but just stay, wouldn't you? Please? I-we've got a spare bunk in our cabin. Just-stay. For a couple days?" Luke reasoned with her, because he didn't know what else to do. He smiled, because he needed a mask to hide what he was feeling. He stood up, and held out his hand because he needed contact with her, to know that this wasn't a dream.

They walked silently together after that, not because neither had anything to say, but because they felt something inside, some gut instinct, that told them not to ruin any moment of peace, and just think. So they did.

Hand in hand, they walked as slowly as they could underneath the still blackened sky, as if they'd been best friends since birth. Luke held on because it felt right, not like romance, but lie protection, and something in him knew that this girl was something more than she seemed, and there was some brotherly affection that kept him from letting go: and Kaia held on because she needed to find out what was true, and what was not. she felt Luke's protection, and she envied it, that he had protection to give, and this, albeit self-consciously, was why held on. At two in the morning, they arrived back at the cabins and kept walking, Luke leading her back to the Hermes cabin. Without talking, they slid in the back door and past the bunks of sleeping kids, into the 'computer room'. Since nobody ever used it, Luke had made it into his private room, with two double screens on two walls, a very expensive looking CD player attached to the wall with somehow wireless surround sound speakers attached to the top corners of the room, and hundreds of CDs stacked on the wall. The room was large-huge-with extra tables fitted around, and electronics split up all over. _Feels just like home_. Kaia thought, and for some reason, Luke _felt _the thought. They were still holding hands, and it was like there was one little, tiny cog which connected their minds, and as it turned, it took a tiny thought or feeling from Kaia's head and switched it into Luke's, while, at the same time, switching one from Luke's head to Kaia's. It was...fun. And only a little bit scary. And totally connecting. It reminded her of what she used to do with her brother, the only person she'd ever shared anything with, and clenched up. That was a train of thought for later, alone. Because she feared that she was latching onto the first person to show her kindness.

"Hey," He said quietly, and set the light to dim before turning it on. "Flip you for the bed." His mouth twitched up, and she smiled tiredly. She'd shown more emotion today than she had done for a whole six years, and the effects had shown.

"How bout you pretend I'm not a complete girl and let me sleep on the floor?" she countered, and he laughed mutely.

"No, no I'm better than that. Take the bed, I'll grab some extra blankets; and I really need a shower." He laughed again and unlocked his fingers from hers, turning to go back out into the corridor to the laundry room.

"Make yourself at home." He said as he ghosted out of the door, and Kaia flashed a smile at him before collapsing onto the bed as soon as he left. She tore off her jacket and face planted into the surprisingly soft pillows of Luke's bed. She inhaled and a strong smell of cologne and mint wafted through her. She lay there, and wondered where-_click._ Right on cue, Luke re-entered holding up a thick blanket to lie on the carpeted floor and a thin sheet to blanket himself with, since although it was the middle of the night and was becoming bitingly cold outside, the Hermes cabin was packed, and heat didn't escape quick enough from the walls.

Kaia laid spread eagle on the bed face down, and her breathing had already eased out. Luke glanced at her, and then showered for twenty minutes. He dressed into a pair of boardies, but left his soiled top off, chucking it into the trashcan outside the bathroom and checking the time. 2:30am. He lay down on his makeshift bed, and fell right asleep.


	10. Feels Like Home

_You think I'm pretty without any make up on_

_You think I'm funny when I tell the punchline wrong._

_I know you get me, so I let my walls come down..._

_~Teenage dream~_

_~Katy Perry~_

The days went as quickly as they had come, and Luke and Kaia trained together, day after day. She'd wake up, and run, for what seemed like hours and hours and, in reality, was indeed many hours. She'd get up from her separate small cabin, (which she and Luke had steadily been adding onto) that had been assigned to her by Chiron, the Camps activity director, and indeed an old friend of Kaia's (Because no way was he letting her stay in Luke's room).

Any way, she'd get up, get dressed, throw her chocolate hair into a messy ponytail and run for what seemed like forever until she reached a big oak tree stump a few hundred yards behind the tree house, sit down; and think. And the more she thought, she didn't want to, and the more she didn't want to, the more she discovered. She thought about Clarisse, and why she could empathise with her, when she couldn't with anyone else. She thought about what she'd said. _No one can help me._ She thought about it, but held herself back self-consciously, until two weeks later. She'd been getting along well with Clarisse, training and hanging out with her as well as Luke, but not usually together. She'd talked to Clarisse about Luke, but knew she wasn't in love with him. She had a thing, with guys, where she couldn't help but fall for the first guy who was nice to her. Anyone else, and Kaia would've laughed. But not Clarisse. She sat patiently, as patient as she ever was, and listened and laughed with her and helped her. She talked her out of Luke, told him he was a jerk sometimes, but not mentioning that he was usually a great guy. She hung around him at tea and before and after training, she talked to him at night, but for some reason, she still hadn't _talked _to him. They'd talked about movies and computers and fighting, and dating history (that was an awkward conversation) and generally bitched about some other campers. They'd talked about the Gods, and although Kaia didn't let on at first how much she despised them (not that she'd told him why) he showed the same reluctance to talk about them, and an awkward silence ensued. To which Luke blurted; "I hate them." And that's when they really started talking.

They had too much control, he said, and he wasn't power crazy, but he admitted that, if they went down, he could do a better job. He said they killed innocent people, and all though they were nowhere near as bad as what they used to be like (Luke, here, using the example of when Zeus raped some chick) they still didn't care about any mortal or even demi-god. Kaia totally agreed with him, but held back her own reasons of why she loathed them more than she was letting on. Luke noticed that she was hesitant as soon as he opened his mouth, but he didn't push her.

It was a Sunday, and the sun was already temperate as Kaia got up for her early morning run, and by the time she got back she was sweating, which was unusual, because she never usually got tired, even when she sprinted for over an hour. Her endurance was spectacular, it was how she was trained. She undressed and hopped into the shower, bringing some clean clothes with her that she'd bought while shopping with Clarisse. A mini skirt, a plain white tank and some white pumps she took from the drawer to the side of her room in her cabin, which was extremely lush. She took some inspiration while building it with the other campers, and heightened on huge columns of Earth that she had pulled up from the ground. Her unique power for the elements labelled her as special back home, but here, it made her extraordinary. Only a couple of campers had been there when she'd done it, the least that were there all day, because she didn't feel like being the freak show. Neither Luke or Clarisse were there when she did it, either, because she'd told them to go away. They'd understood, although the quizzical looks on their faces had made sure that she'd have to tell them sooner or later, if the people who'd been there hadn't spewed their mouth off already, despite the fact that she'd told them not to. She knew that Luke and Clarisse would guess about her affinities, since, you know, there were 9 _huge freakin' pillars _of Earth sticking up forty feet in the air. But she just didn't want them to _see _her do it. Like that made any sense.

She let Luke (after an argument of 'you really don't need to go to the trouble') carve out slots for a set of stairs that stuck right out of the Earth pillars, carved down from rich mahogany that grew in the woods. They were beautiful and cool, and wound around the pillars three times before arriving at a mahogany door. The cabin itself was more of a house, three stories high, each floor one large room, divided only by the big squishy arm chairs and comfortable sofas that littered the down stairs, and a medium sized bathroom with a hot tub and a power shower taking up the majority of the space in a room on the second floor. The other half of the second floor was kitted with flat screen TV's attached to the walls, guns and knives and other weapons littering the desks that ran around a corner, and the latest PS's and games equipment that she'd ordered to the nearest house outside of camp. There was a big armchair in one corner, and a leather swivel chair that was in front of the desk. Yeah. It'd been a big order. The third floor was her bedroom. She didn't know what Clarisse had put in the order, but the bed was, like, a triple bed, with a huge thick duvet and great, soft pillows. It was a rich red, not maroon, and Kaia loved it. She loved the house. She loved the window seats that Luke had secretly made, and the kitchenette with its island that Luke loved, and the fireplace that took a long time to get sorted. She loved it, and she was starting to love being here. Which was a huge, huge problem.

"Come on, Kaia, it's fun! It really, really is. And I know you wouldn't miss a chance to roast some more marshmallows." Luke said as he smirked, referring to an incident a few days back when the two of them had trekked out past the boundaries of the cam and made a huge bonfire in the clearing. Kaia's marshmallow roasting had ended up with sticky crap all over her fingers, and them having to find the nearest stream to wash it off.

"Ha, ha, hilarious." Kaia said in a monotone from her place lounging in one of the armchairs that she'd dragged over to Luke's room, because, apparently, 'there's not enough comfy things in here'. She dangled one leg over the arm of the chair and lay her head back, listening to the music coming softly through the surround sound.

_Roll away your stone, I'll roll away mine._

_Together we can see what we will find._

_Don't leave me alone at this time;_

_For I am afraid of what I will discover inside. _

It sounded very a light to her situation, and she sighed. Going to tonight's party was definitely not on the top of her priorities list. Apparently, they were fun, a bit of alcohol, but not pissed-of-your-head alcohol, because Chiron would be popping in and out of the clearing where everyone was gathering. Food-which apparently there was plenty of-was provided, and if Luke thought it fun, then surely it had to be okay. But Kaia-she didn't want to go. Not because the other campers didn't like her-they adored her, and practically worshipped the ground she stood on (which Luke never ceased to tease her about) because they all came to watch her practice, and when she defeated eight or nine demi-gods at once, the loved her. When she defeated thirty of them at once with only one scratch on her elbow from where she smashed a guys shield too hard, they adored her. When she defeated Luke three times in a row, well, that was when the started to worship the ground she walked upon. No. It definitely wasn't that the others didn't like her. It was more the fact that she would just attach herself more to these people, these people from another dimension, that she hardly knew. Two months ago, her trust issues were way, way above 'issues'. And yet here she was, making friends. She'd never had friends before, bar her brother, so why was she pushing them away so badly? Why wasn't she letting them in? _Because you think they'll turn their back on you. Didn't you promise yourself that no one would ever turn their back on you a long, long time ago?_ A small voice at the back of her head whispered. And her self consciousness finally caught up to her. And she started to reach deep, deep down, and _see _herself, for the first time in, well, forever. When her father had remarried, shut her out, shut her _down,_ she hadn't looked inside herself. Hadn't shown emotion. When her step-bitch had hit her across the cheek, and her father had stood there, turning a blind eye, she hadn't cried. Hadn't screamed. Had walked calmly back to her room and deadlocked the door, blasting up her music. When her brother died-and that was when she realised that something was wrong. He'd died, and she'd stood there, and she'd know; there were two paths that she could go down, but only one choice. Cry then and she'd loose herself in despair. She'd never let go. And so she turned her back, and at that précised moment, her heart had been ripped out of her chest. So why could she feel it beating now? She cut that thought short, and jumped up from her armchair, startling Luke so bad that he flipped back his blond hair and his eyes turned from ice blue to eye-of-the-storm grey.

"Kai-Kai! What the hell's wrong?" Luke whispered, stepping forward to grasp the top of her arms. He gripped them tightly to support her slightly swaying form, and she leaned into him.

"I-no! Get _off _me! I-I need to go. Just, just leave me alone." She hissed, and then he started to really worry.

"Kaia! Hey-hey," he said gently "calm down. What's wrong? Hey-hey!" he said as she backed off and he grabbed her hand. "Sit down. Talk to me. _Please _Kaia, I'm begging you." He sounded so sincere, so caring, that she looked into his eyes. _Big mistake. _

"I'm sorry." She said. And ran.

**Hey guys, next chappy's gonna be Kaia/Luke slightly, and it'll get better from there **** PLEASE read and review **** thanks, hope you're enjoying it! x**


	11. When love takes over

_Its complicated  
It always is  
That's just the way it goes  
Feels like I waited so long for this  
I wonder if it shows_

_~When love takes over~_

_~Kelly Rowland~_

Kaia ran, and as she ran she closed her mind. If she started digging through her self-consciousness now, she'd just about drop down. _Sit. Sit, and then think._ So she sprinted the last mile, and found herself the exact place she wanted to be. She walked slowly over to the tree stump, and sat. And thought. _So, here I am. And what was I thinking? About Clarisse? Or Luke? Or me? Or all three? _She held her head in her hands, and started digging. Deep, deep into her self-consciousness, she thought about what had happened when her brother died, and what it was all about.

But it started before that. And she looked deeper, and felt, for the first time, what she should've felt a long, long time ago. All the things that should've made her into a pathetic little girl all those years ago washed over her. In her head, she knew that this was it; she had never let go, like she thought she had, but just blazed it into the past, and forgotten.

She thought about things that she had never let herself think before, and realised about a hundred things about herself that she never had before, and she cried, for the first time in a long, long time.

Tears streamed down her face and she tried to cry silently, but sobs escaped her and she cried out into the night. She was changing, she could feel it, and this was her; shedding her old skin, her old life. She wept for minutes which felt like decades, and all of a sudden, a dry twig snapped beside her and she jumped ten feet in the air. She stood up, shaking, until two strong hands grasped the top of her arms and one moved up to cup her cheek.

"Hey, hey." Luke whispered gently, moving one hand down to her waist and pulling Kaia's head into his shoulder. He felt her tense up, and then, weirdly, relax. She had trust issues, he knew, but he put his arms around her and topped her head with his, whispering comforts as she buried her face into his shoulder and cried with her hands on his chest.

They stayed like that for a long time, until the sun capped the treetops, and finally disappeared completely. They sat down, and Kaia curled up in Luke's lap as he watched her, concerned, and laid his hand on her forehead. She gazed up at the stars that were starting to appear and then shut her eyes, inhaling deeply. She smelled the clear, clean air, the thick scent of the Earth, the sweet smoke of Luke's cologne.

"The party! Oh, shit, sorry Luke. Completely forgot. Come on, I'm sorry, we've gotta go, we're gonna be late." Kaia said hurriedly, sitting up and rubbing her head, wishing to hell and back that Luke didn't have to see that. But that was part of it, letting him see. Letting her walls down. No one said it would be easy.

"No, it's fine, Kai, really. Just-just stay. Really, it's okay. Are you okay?" he asked softly, but he could see her hesitation, feel her muscles tense up as he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. As soon as he saw her, crying by herself, he knew that something had changed. Granted, he hadn't known her for long, but their friendship was stronger; like they clicked as soon as they met. She let her guard down as much as she ever did around him, but it was nothing compared to now, as he held her, and even as he let her go, let her stand up and wipe her already dried eyes, and drag him up with her, he still felt a different pull towards her. Not brotherly, definitely not. He felt an elusive _pull, _and it definitely wasn't brotherly. He wanted to hold her closer, to pull her into him, and protect her from whatever had her closed up in the first place. Well, he thought, shit. Just _Shit._

**Hey guys, I know it's short, sorry about that! Working on the next couple chappies, will post 'em asap, I promise. Any ideas and I'd love to hear 'em **** Please review! Thanks, it'd really mean alot! x**


	12. One in a million

**Hey guys-just want to do a few shout outs, not sure who's looking, but I want to say thanks anyway, it really means a lot to me, no jokes. First, to horseluvr888, Rein Lin, TheAFanFicWriter, charactercreater55, XxXxXxILuvNicoDiAngeloxXxXxX and xXNeverThereXx for adding this story to their favourite stories list, story alert list and author alert list, it keeps me wirting, thanks!**

**And last, but by no means least, my first review! TheOracleOfDelphi, thanks! It means a whole lot to me, so here's the next chappy! x**

_How did I get here?_

_I turned around_

_And there you were..._

_~One in a million~_

_~Miley Cyrus~_

"Luke! _Luke!" _Kaia waved a hand in front of his face, laughing out loud at his vague expression and grabbing hold of the hand that she let go when she jumped up. His eyes blinked once, twice, and he laughed quietly to himself. Shaking his head slowly, he looked at the ground that he was now squatting on, one hand being tugged by Kaia, the other over his mouth, and then he was laughing, laughing as he had never laughed before, and then he was standing and laughing and bear hugging Kaia, this girl, this wonderful, beautiful, funny intelligent, witty, _perfect _girl. His heart beat wildly against his chest, thrashing wildly to jump into his hands so that he could give it to Kaia.

"Luke! Can't. Breath." Kaia whispered, feigning to be out of breath. And Luke let her go, still grinning, realising-all the time-that this changed everything. That she might not feel the same, that she might reject him but that-finally-he had true proof that his heart still beat inside him. And he had a chance. He had Kaia. And no way was he letting that slip away.

"Huh." Was his response, exhaling the air that he still had left, and breaking into a huge grin all over again. Kaia laughed, glad to see he wasn't having some fit, and looked at him as if he were mad.

"What is _up _with you, Luke?" She questioned, still holding his hand. She was rarely shy, but he didn't know if that was a sign...or not. Kiss her? Or not? He bit his lip, suddenly unsure if his love-for that was what it was-for her was a good thing.

For one thing, she dressed like she had a lot of money, and she must have, if her credit cards weren't running out after all the house stuff she bought, and what was he? An orphaned guy who knew little to nothing about rich communities anywhere. And besides, how many guys did she have pining after her?

He'd overheard at least twelve planning to ask her to the party tonight, which is why he had stuck extra close to her for the last few days, and the rest all thought she was the hottest thing around. But he knew her, knew she was more than that. He was the definition of gorgeous, her long, half curled hair piled over one shoulder, her white vest smudged in green grass stains and mud, her short shorts muddy, as well as her bare legs and feet. Her eyes shining not like they did when someone said something about Luke, and she shot a malicious comment at them, but like the ocean when the rain has been and went, and the water is slowly rippling, except that they were the deepest brown that he had ever seen. Not deep as in dark-they were practically gold now, frozen fire that swelled within itself a sure sign that her mood was so light. But never had he seen someone so stunningly perfect.

"The party, Luke," she laughed as she saw his again vague expression, and tugged him along behind her as she made her way back to the cabins.

"It-it's the other way, Kai." Luke managed, wandering why she was going back.

"Maybe, but it's still light, idiot! The party won't start for four hours, at least, and besides-look at me!"

He didn't have to try very hard.

"I'm a mess."

That was debatable.

"I can't go to a party looking like this,"  
Even though you'd be more gorgeous than everyone there.

"and my breakdown's got your shirt soaked."

He could hear some of the reluctance in her voice, about mentioning how she was 'weak', because he knew that she'd see it that way. He glanced down at his button up black top with the sleeves rolled up to his elbow, and saw that there was a wet part on his shoulder that he had missed, where her head was leaning into the crook of his neck. Just remembering her curled into his chest almost made him keen like a wounded animal, but he cleared his throat and resumed walking with her. She let go of his hand.

"Race ya." She winked, and they were off, whipping through the trees until they reached the cabins, which were surprisingly farther than Luke thought.

"Hey, I'll catch you later, yeah? I've gotta change and I said I'd meet Clarisse before the party, even though I wasn't planning on going." She frowned for a moment, and Luke silently wished that she decided not to go, so they could just sit up and talk like they always did, and so none of the boys would start drooling over her, but what came out was;

"Whatever you want, Kai. I'm not bothered." He flashed a grin at her, and he thought he caught a glimpse of her eyes lingering on his face, but she quickly combed a hand through her hair and grinned back at him.

"Later, then," she flipped, and he nodded once.

"Later." He agreed.

Watched her leave.

Wished from Olympus to Hades that she could be his.

Knew, somehow, that she could not.

And it killed him.

**Well, that took a while, cus I'm back at school! But I'm trying to get one done as often as I can, trying to think of some twists and turns frantically **

**Thanks for reading guys, review if you feel like it x**


	13. Next Contestant?

_This night somebody's gettin' hurt._

_Is that_

_Your hand_

_On my girlfriend?_

_~Next Contestant~_

_~Nickleback~_

Kaia laughed as she jogged confusedly back towards her cabin. Racing up the stairs that looped around the house, she yanked open the door-there was never any need to lock it-and grabbed her credit card that she'd acquired when she'd got here from some contacts she'd kept from her last visit into this dimension.

They needed to go shopping.

"Clarisse!" She shouted as she opened the door to Clarisse's cabin, which was subsequently packed. Boys and girls of Apollo were getting ready, doing their hair and clothes-_already. _Wow. Well, it was actually all of the girls that were doing their hair-hair dryers, curlers, GHDs, clips and all kinds of different ornaments were being pulled out from everywhere and dragged to the girls dorm, laughing. The boys sat there rolling their eyes, or looking at the back of their chosen girl. Their heads turned when Kaia entered. She didn't notice.

"Clarisse!" Kaia shouted again, and she emerged from behind a bunk bed she shared with a nice girl that Kaia had made friends with on her first week there, Scarlette. She had, well, scarlet hair (which looked fabulous) that fell in straight sheets just past her shoulder, so when she flipped it the light bounced off it beautifully. Kaia would've been jealous if she hadn't learnt how to not be a long time ago. Back when her brot-but she cut that thought short, and focused what she was sure must've been a dazed expression.

"Hey guys," she noticed suddenly that Scarlette had already applied makeup and eyeliner, "but why is everyone already getting ready? We've got hours yet, haven't we?"

"We? So you _are _coming then?" Clarisse questioned excitement clear in her voice. Scarlette was also watching her intently, a grin slowly spreading across her face, realising how all the boys also started raising their eyebrows on the couches that they were lounging on. They'd let their hopes down when One of the twins tried to go with her, and she told him, very politely, that no, she wasn't going, and yes, thank you, she'd tell him if she changed her mind. Looked to everyone else that Luke had other plans, and Scarlette wandered how Kaia could be so blind.

"Er, well, yeah. I s'pose Luke convinced me." Kaia mumbled, not wanting to go into detail about why she needed a pick up.

"_Cool." _Scarlette said, in a somewhat decisive tone, and Kaia looked up. She knew the look on their faces, and it spelt out one thing. Mischief.

"Guuuys," she started, narrowing her eyes at them, "What's up with you?"

"Us? Nothing. Absolutely nothing." It sounded as if she was trying to keep something in, and if there was one thing she'd learnt, it was that Scarlette was a very hard person to get secrets out of, and no way would she be getting Clarisse on her own now. Damn.

"Uh, okay. But, look, we've _got to go shopping. _I've got nothing to wear. And no, I'm not bothered about the party, but seriously, everyone's wearing dresses right?"

They both nodded wisely.

"So, I need one. Coming with?"

They both nodded wisely.

"Oh, hey, Luke." Clarisse said, and Kaia flipped her head. She was glad that Clarisse was over him now, but she wasn't sure what she made of their friendship. Luke hadn't had anyone that he was truly close with before she came along, and she wandered if Clarisse didn't like it that way, or-

"Hey, girls. What time you gong, then?"

"Why, Luke, are you asking us _all _to the party? You know it's one girl to one guy, right? Or were you hoping to get lucky?" Scarlette asked in that straight-to-the point way she had of hers. Kaia snorted, and Clarisse was in fits of giggles. Luke just rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, whatever Scarlette. You'd be lucky." He shot back.

"Oh, I'm hurt, Luke. Right here." She placed a hand over her heart and they both laughed.

"But no, I'm not, I was just wan-"

"Well in that case, Kaia, could I have a word?" Jake from the Apollo cabin put a hand on her shoulder, and my Gods, Scarlette thought the look that Luke was giving him may just make him drop dead on the spot.

"Well, you can say it in front of all of us, can't you, Jake?" Luke said tightly-not that anyone but maybe Kaia noticed-cocking his head and turning around fully. Kaia turned as well, subtly shrugging off Jake's hand without causing offence. She had no idea.

"Yeah, Jake. What is it? Something wrong with the party?"  
By which she meant the alcohol. It was his offer to get it for everyone.

"Oh, no, of course not. Had it shipped in, y'know. S'good stuff."

Sounded like he'd already been having a swig of it, if you asked Scarlette.

"So what's the problem then?" Luke's voice was flat, hostile, and this time Jake at least picked up on it, and Kaia frowned.

"'Kay, big boy, re_lax. _Just wanted a word with Kai, if that's not too much to ask. She's ain't your girl, or did I miss something?" His voice was slurred; definitely tipsy. But big mistake. The numbing from the alcohol would be nowhere near enough to stop the pain if Luke decided to slug him in the jaw-or anywhere else for that matter. A muscle in his jaw twitched, and Jake smiled triumphantly.

"Then tell me now, Jake, cus I have to go somewhere, like, _now._"  
Personally, Scarlette would stick round to se Luke beat the crap out of Jake, but that wouldn't happen if Kaia was around. Luke was one of the smartest guys, in her opinion, to know that beating up other guys did not make him look good.

"Okay, sweet'eart. Just-" but too late-Kaia's eyes had flared.

"My _name _is Kaia."

"Right, right, s'ry. So, you know this party, right," Only taking his eyes off of Luke's fists when he talked to her.

"Uh-huh." Scarlette almost laughed. Getting Luke pissed was one thing, but now Kaia's eyebrows were raised, and damn, if those two couldn't take something on, then no-one could.

"I was wanderin' if you'd go with me? Like, y'know, on a date." Whoa. Not only did the little group have every guy's attention, but the girls had even peeked out of getting ready and were whispering. This stopped everyone dead.

"Er, No. I don't think so." Arms crossed over her chest, and this was looking bad.

"Oh yeah? And _why the hell not?" _Hands coming out of his pockets, and this were getting worse.

"Because I don't date guys who get pissed at _four _in the afternoon, asshole." She said, and turned back around, shaking her head at Clarisse, but as she did so, Scarlette could see Jake in slow-motion, reaching up and grabbing Kaia's shoulder harshly, spinning her back around to face him. Big. Mistake.

**So-here's the next chappy! Hope it's okay, not too cheesy, next one will be more upbeat (apart from maybe the first tiny bit where Luke-uh-oh! You'll have to read on to find out ;) thanks for reading, please review **** x**


	14. Once upon a Time

**Okay, here's chapter 14! SO sorry that I haven't posted in ages, and I don't want to make excuses so I'll try to keep writing from now on **** so...enjoy!**

_By keeping her heart protected_

_She'd never ever feel rejected_

_But little Miss Independent said ooh,_

_She fell in love._

_~Miss Independent~_

_~Kelly Clarkson~_

Luke watched Kaia, looked her in the eyes, saw for the first time how her eyes changed colour when her emotions switched so rapidly. They were dark with worry before, a deep brown into which he couldn't penetrate, but now, it was like her eyes were a dark tea, and someone just plopped a dollop of milk into them, making the silt brown a rich gold in which he lost himself for a matter of seconds. He drew his hands out of hers and laced them together.

The soft bed didn't help his leverage as he leaned in, slowly, both of them still cross-legged, and Kaia looking like a deer-caught-in-headlights. He pulled his hands towards him, bringing hers with them, and Kaia with them. Her eyes were sparking in the nicest, most beautiful way, and for some reason, she laughed.

"What's so funny?" Luke whispered, smiling himself, still not quite sure why. The dark red sheets crumpled at they moved on the queen bed, Kaia's face inches from his own. For once, she wasn't hesitating, wasn't serious, wasn't thinking. She was just going with it, and _damn_, it felt good. His breath was all smoke and mint, and it smelt like-like _absolute heaven._ They were sat awkwardly now, Luke leaning over so much that he half lost balance, half pushed himself onto his side, landing softly on his back and pulling his hands up to his shoulders; Kaia's still interlinked. She laughed, an echoing sound that surrounded his heart, and he laughed with her, looking up at her face that was fuller of beauty than anyone he had ever or would ever know. She was straddling him now, with her hands above his shoulders, and it was her face that was laughing and so close to his and her body and heart that was so close, and all he wanted to be was closer.

He took one of his hands and placed it on her cheek. She leaned into it, closing her eyes and sighing-before opening them with mischief glinting in her golden eyes.

"Kaia, Wh-" Luke began, but she'd taken both of her hands and started tickling his side-Hell! He was laughing so much that only the fact that he was a lot bigger and stronger than her allowed him to flip them both over and restrain her hands and start tickling her.

"L-Luke!" She went into hysterics, laughing until tears spilled out of her eyes, and tried weakly to shove him off. They were both laughing loudly before the hands on his chest started punching him and he grinned even wider at their feeble attempts. Regardless, he grabbed the hands now flat against his chest and held them there with one hand, while leaning in and wiping away Kaia's tears with the other.

"I'm sorry I made you cry," He whispered as he leant into her ear, but she just laughed quietly.

"I think I'll forgive you, just this one time." She replied, and slowly brought her hands out of his hold. They ran up his toned chest, covered by his ripped and bloodied smart T-shirt, past his shoulders and laced themselves into his fine hair.

"Your head-" She began, but he cut her off by pressing his lips to hers, finally closing the gap between them.

"Later." He concluded, nuzzling her neck, before meeting her lips once more, his hands supporting his body on either side of her head as he straddled her.

"Luke, I-" _knock, knock, knock. _Three floors down, the door banged.

"Oh, my fu-"

"_Luke!" _ Kaia gasped, laughing, and burying her head in his neck.

"I think they'll go away if we just-"

"_Kaia!_ Get that skinny butt out here _right now _or I may have to kill Luke for keeping you in there for so long! And no-in case you're wandering- I'm not going away, so open up!" Clarisse shouted though the door.

"And if you think you're missing that party, little Miss 'I'll just get my boyfriend to beat up the alcohol provider', then you can think again! We need someone else to get the alcohol, and guess what? You're the weirdly rich one!"

Groaning, Kaia propped herself up on her elbows, keeping her head rested on Luke's shoulder. She opened her mouth to reply to Clarisse, but Luke kissed her fiercely. His hand held her face to his as he deepened the kiss and tilted his head to the side, pushing her back onto the bed. She grinned into it, and couldn't help but push him off her laughing. She felt lightheaded and dizzy and could barely breathe when she looked at Luke's radiant face, and she just wanted to stay there and stay pinned beneath his warm body for forever.

But Clarisse rapped loudly on the door again, and Kaia groaned, nuzzling into Luke again.

"I think I'd better go," she began, but it was like waking up on a freezing winters morning, wrapped in your thickest duvet. Her heart and mind were telling her to stay; and only her mouth acted differently from the rest of her. And even that changed its mind when Luke captured her lips for another kiss. He could feel her grinning into it, but he took no notice, tilting his head to the side and running his tongue along her bottom lip, asking for entrance. She let him gladly, and didn't even bother fighting for dominance as he kissed her passionately, making her groan and lie on her back, wrapping her arms securely around him once more. Neither heard the door smash open, or the feet that could be as silent as they wanted to be stomping up the stairs and onto the top floor.

"Guys, get a room!" Clarisse moaned as she saw them oblivious to the outside world. Luke moved broke away and, keeping his forehead on Kaia's, turned to glare at Clarisse.

"We did, until you came barging in here, idiot." He said, scowling at her already made up face with eyes like molten ice. If he wasn't so caught up in the moment, he would've raised his eyes at Clarisse. Her usually armour clad form was wrapped in golden silk, with bangles and earrings to match, and her golden hair fell like a water fall from her scalp. She looked beautiful.

"Luke," Kaia said disapprovingly, bringing her hands to pull his face back to look at her.

"I'm coming, Clarisse. Just give me ten minutes." She shot look at Clarisse, wondering if she would take the hint.

"Too long. The party starts in three hours. You need to port me out of here, get the booze, and then port back in with that lovely ability you have within that time. You also need to get ready!" She said, looking at the clothes Kaia was wearing, (or, at least, as much of them as she could see beneath Luke). "And what happened to you, Frankenstein? Oh yeah, that's right, you lost a fight to that good for nothing asshole, who was also drunk. I mean, I knew you were crap at fighting, but-"

"I did _not _lose!" Luke was kneeling up now, hands still entwined with Kaia's, but itching to slug Clarisse in the jaw.

"Luke..." Kaia started, but it was already over.

"Five minutes, love birds, and then I'm taking you whether you like it or not."

Luke snorted. "Sounds kinky."

"Honestly, Kaia, I don't know what you see in him."

"The same thing you did, I expect." Luke sneered, not bothering to hold back his malice. Kaia just gaped at him.

"That was at least a week ago, when your hair looked better. And your body, for that matter. You're getting fat, Luke. _Five minutes, _Kaia."

"_Luke!" _Kaia said, looking to her left, where Luke was now on his back next to her.

"You can't _say _that." But she wasn't angry, not really. She knew that Clarisse wasn't angry about her and Luke, from the mind vibes she was giving off, and she could tell that Luke didn't really want to hurt Clarisse, just wanted her to go away. He looked at her apologetically, using his free hand to trace the line of her jaw, and watch her as she closed her eyes and shivered.

"Luke..."

"I know." The three words that build up a life, or destroy one, hung in the air between them, and Kaia remembered all of times that her and her brother had lain in their garden on their backs, just like now, gazing up at the stars with wondrous eyes. She remembered how the girls that had been introduced to her used to chat about men as if they were princes in shining armour, every single one of them. And perhaps they were, to each individual person. And she remembered thinking that she would never, ever need someone like that, because no one would ever be closer to her than she would be to her brother.

But he was gone. And Luke was right there.


End file.
